Turkish delegation meets top officials in Iraq

The Turkish delegation, headed by the Turkish Prime Ministry's chief adviser, Ahmet Davutoglu, on Thursday met the Iraqi President Talabani, the Prime Minister of Kurdish administration Barzani and high ranking officials from the Iraqi government and Kurdish administration, the Anatolian Agency reported.

Talabani, who hosted the meeting, said he was pleased it had taken place. He said it was important for Turkey to strengthen ties with not only the central Iraqi government but also the Kurdish administration.

Talabani, himself a Kurd, visited Turkey in early March in an effort to reduce tension between the two countries.

"The two delegations met and they discussed mutual relations between the two sides and studied the problems and anxiety which have colored relations between them in the past," a statement from Talabani's office said.

"The two sides have found the necessary mechanism to overcome these problems and hurdles which hinder the development of the relationship between the two sides," the statement read.

According to the statement, the delegations stressed the need to resolve matters between Turkey and the Kurdish administration, to hold meetings on issues such as politics, economics, social and security matters and to hold consultations.

"This is the first time a meeting has taken place between the Turkish government and the Kurdistan government," Falah Mustafa, foreign policy chief in the Kurdish regional government, told Reuters.

Mustafa also said the presence of the outlawed PKK separatists in northern Iraq was discussed in general terms, "not in specifics," adding the sides agreed to find a peaceful solution.Â

Turkey has had fraught relations with Iraq's Kurdish region because it says outlawed PKK Kurdish separatists shelter there.

Turkish warplanes have targeted terrorist positions in northern Iraq since mid-December, a move which Iraq has called "unfortunate." In February, the army conducted a week-long ground offensive against PKK hideouts in the region, where more than 2,000 militants take refuge.

However Turkey signaled a policy shift in its relations with the Kurdish administration in northern Iraq recently as it declared it wants to establish a strategic dialogue mechanism with Iraq. Â

HASHIMI IN TURKEY Â

Meanwhile Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan met Iraqi Vice-President Tariq al-Hashimi in Ankara on Thursday.

The bilateral relations between the two countries under recent developments in Iraq topped the agenda of the meeting. Erdogan and al-Hashimi also discussed their cooperation in the fight against terrorism and Turkey's contributions to regional stability.

Al-Hashimi also met Turkish President Abdullah Gul at Cankaya Presidential Palace earlier in the day.

The Iraqi Vice-President left for Istanbul on Thursday after completing talks in the Turkish capital of Ankara.

The future for Turkey and Iraq is more promising, he told reporters at Ankara's Esenboga International Airport, the Anatolian Agency reported. 

Photo: AA